In general, a cartridge of a shaving system has at least one blade with a cutting edge which is moved across the surface of the skin being shaved by means of a handle to which the cartridge is attached. The cartridge may be mounted detachably on the handle to enable the cartridge to be replaced by a fresh cartridge when the blade sharpness has diminished to an unsatisfactory level, or it may be attached permanently to the handle with the intention that the entire razor be discarded when the blade or blades have become dulled. Cartridges usually include a guard which contacts the skin in front of the blade(s) and a cap for contacting the skin behind the blade(s) during shaving. However, some products offer a guard that is adjacent to the blades, but is positioned on the handle instead on the cartridge or housing. The cap and guard may aid in establishing the so-called “shaving geometry”, i.e., the parameters which determine the blade orientation and position relative to the skin during shaving, which in turn have a strong influence on the shaving performance and efficacy of the razor. The guard may include a generally rigid guard bar that may be formed integrally with the housing or platform structure which provides a support for the blades. Guards may include skin stretching elements made from various types of elastomeric materials that are intended to stretch the skin, but not align hair in front of the blade.
Hair growth varies greatly depending on the individual, as well as the area of the body being shaved. Typically short hairs are characterized as growth of approximately twenty-four hours. Standard shaving razor guards are able to cut short hairs rather effectively because the short hairs are generally stiff and are oriented generally perpendicular to the blade. As the hair grows longer it has a tendency to bend over and lay flat against the surface of the skin in an orientation that is more parallel to the blade. Standard shaving razor guards are not very effective due to the orientation of longer hairs because the blade will have the tendency to skive or cut the hair at an angle more parallel to the skin surface. Some hairs may lay flat such that the blade of the razor passes over the hairs without cutting them. The user often has to shave the same area repeatedly to cut hairs that were either uncut or not cut close enough to the skin surface, resulting in increased skin irritation.